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In this expert meeting the participants will study drawings as objects and the act of drawing as a process of registering empirical knowledge. Drawing was one of the basic skills of artists in early modern Europe, whether they were painters, sculptors, or goldsmiths – learning to draw was an essential skill. The practice of drawing was thus also something that was continuously used throughout an artist’s career. But not only artists learned to draw, the practice of drawing was also part of a gentlemen’s education, and many women learned to draw also. Naturally, also scientific practitioners would use drawing as a mode of registering and communication their observations.

This expert meeting will be based on conversations around drawings. We will bring together historians of art and science who work with early modern drawings. With short presentations of current research objects (drawings of all kinds), we will discuss how drawings on paper were part of a process of observation, thinking, and communicating. We will specifically look at materials involved, the processes used, the subjects depicted and the draughts(wo)men who produced the drawings.

Objectives: the goal of this meeting is to look closer at the process of drawing empirical knowledge and to connect this with both artists and scientific practitioners in the early modern period. Through looking at drawings together and discussing the processes of putting something on paper and considering the various skills needed for this, we aim to bring further into focus the role of drawing(s) in early modern knowledge acquisition.

The expert meeting is not open to the public. It was made possible through the generous support of the NIKI and the Max Planck Research Group Visualizing Science in Media Revolutions of the Bibliotheca Hertziana – Max Planck Institute for Art History. The workshop is not open to the public. If you are interested in attending, please contact the NIKI (niki@nikiflorence.org).